Chicken Coop Update-What I Would Do Differently
It has been two year since we started our chicken keeping journey! One of the first things I did, even before getting chicks, was make a plan for a coop. Now that I have some personal experience, and know a bit more about chicken keeping there are a handful of things I would do differently in terms of the coop. You might remember that we turned an old outhouse that was already on our farm into a coop, and while it has served its purpose, and does function well, it is in need of some upgrades this spring/summer.
Now that we have 12 hens and a rooster, the coop has become a bit crammed. I had always heard that chickens can be addicting, and to plan for more than you think, but I still did not take that into consideration as much as I should have. We’ve housed 13 chickens in the coop since last spring. During the spring, summer and fall, the size really is fine. My chickens don’t spend a lot of time in the coop when the weather is decent. However once winter rolls around, it gets a bit crammed for them. There just isn’t enough floor space. Luckily even in the winter, my chickens spend most of the day outside, but the size is not ideal for those very cold days we get here in Montana.
The coop could use a little refresh after a long winter!
Size is not the only issue we have dealt with in regards to the coop. It is also not as insulated as I would like. The nice thing about it being small is that the chickens themselves can help keep it warm with their body heat. I still however would prefer it be a little warmer on its own. Luckily it is tucked in some trees which helps keep it out of the wind, and I keep square bales around it, but since we do not provide a heat source, a coop with a bit more insulation would be nice.
Next, I would have made it easier to clean knowing what I now know. Chickens poop a lot! Luckily it is mainly confined to below their roost. My perfect coop would have a hatch door that could be opened so that I could just shovel that area out. Then I could replace the straw and not spend so much time shoveling around the nesting boxes, and the roost. Easy cleaning will be high on my list if we ever upgrade!
Speaking of nesting boxes. We have made changes to them a couple of times, and it seems as though the chickens also change their minds on where they prefer to lay their eggs. It is usually all in one box which is convenient for collecting eggs. We really don’t need six spaces for egg laying, and I could have laid that out better.
One change that I did make was I added an automatic chicken run door that opens to their enclosed run. This was a game changer! I love knowing that they are shut in their coop at night and let out with the sun! Since they prefer to be outside, this maximizes their outdoor time. Plus, I have never had one left out as the door doesn’t shut until about 30 minutes after sunset which is plenty of time for chickens to go to roost. There has never been any issues with chickens getting shut out! Seriously the run door is worth the money! It works well in the winter, but I do check it once the temp drop into the negative teens as it can get iced up. Twice in two winters I had to manually shut it, but otherwise it works really well.
As far as the run goes, I really would not make changes to it other than I would have made it a bit larger. This really isn’t necessary as I did expand it last spring when we got more chicks, but I always think just a bit larger would be nice for them. Our chickens do free range for part of the day most days, and that is really how they prefer it! I am thankful that for now, it works for us as we like having them wander the farm. I tried to secure their run as much as possible so that if we are away, they are safe. We used hardwire cloth for the run and I would absolutely recommend that! We used hog panels on top to deter aerial predators and so far we haven’t had any issues with predators. Something could still climb in through the hog panels if it really wanted to, but like I said, we haven’t had that happen. We also keep a very big rooster on our security detail. (he’s a giant fluff ball so I am not sure how much protection he offers, but he is a big bodied fella)
When planning for chickens, the coop and run is very important! Go bigger than you think you will need, make sure it is warm, and do your best to secure it from predators. If the budget allows, then absolutely invest in an automatic run door and save yourself from having to be outside early on cold winter mornings, or from having to go back out at night to shut them in at 10:00 pm in July when the days are long. I’ve got an upgrade on my mind, and I know that I can always use our little outhouse coop to house younger pullets, or even broody hens. Plus it is still so dang cute!
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